Council Grove

Allegawaho Memorial Heritage Park

Icon Last Kaw Indian Village in Kansas. Informational audio post at Indian Agency Ruins. Rough walking trail, unknown Indian monument.
 

Cottage House Hotel

Icon Warm Hospitality and Victorian Charm: A Beautifully Restored Prairie Victorian Hotel located in Council Grove, Kansas, nestled in the Flint Hills, and Serving Travelers for Over a Century
 

Council Grove - U. S. Post Office Artwork

Icon The U. S. Post Office Artwork, Council Grove, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on 10-17-89. It was built in 1939. Artwork includes the 1940 Charles B. Rogers Oil on Canvas, Autumn Colors.
 

Council Grove Carnegie Library

Icon Council Grove Carnegie Library was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on 6-25-87.
 

Council Grove City Water Supply Lake

Icon Council Grove City Water Supply Lake is a small lake located to the west on the large Council Grove Lake operated by the Corps of Engineers. The City Water Supply Lake is surrounded by residential development and is near the airport.
 

Council Grove Historical Trail

The site of Council Grove was a camping and meeting place for Native Americans, explorers, soldiers, and Santa Fe Trail traders. Here they found ample water, grass, and abundant wood due to the extensive groves of hardwood timber. As a rendezvous point for caravans moving west on the Santa Fe Trail, Council Grove provided both Hispanic and American travelers an opportunity to repair wagons and secure provisions in preparation for the long overland trip to Santa Fe. The Kaw (or Kanza) Indians lived in three villages located three, seven, and ten miles southeast of Council Grove from 1848 until their removal south to Indian Territory in 1873. Visitors to Council Grove can follow a twenty-one site historical tour of the town. The tour route is marked by directional signs and each site has an interpretive sign. Additionally, a tour guide brochure identifies each site. The touring experience is augmented by nine newly-installed wayside exhibits which interpret the sites listed by the National Park Service as National Historic Santa Fe Trail Sites.
 

Council Grove Lake

Icon Council Grove Lake is located in the famous Flint Hills region of Kansas. The lake is one mile northwest of the historic town of Council Grove and within walking distance of the Santa Fe Trail. The lake is in a very aesthetic setting with the rolling bluestem hills trimmed with hickory, oak, walnut, and elm along the streams. Council Grove is on the Neosho River, whose name comes from the Osage Indian word Neosho meaning "water within."
 

Council Grove National Bank

Icon The Council Grove National Bank was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on 6-3-76. It was built in 1887.
 

Council Oak

Icon Council Oak US Commissioners and Osage Chiefs signed treaty here in 1825 guaranteeing safe passage to Euro-Americans along the Santa Fe Trail.
 

Cowboy Jail

Icon This early day calaboose (jail) was built in 1849. It was said to be the only jail on the Santa Fe Trail at the time.
 

Diamond Springs

Icon When the Santa Fe Trail was first surveyed in 1825, Diamond Springs was called the Diamond of the Plain, and records of Santa Fe traders who passed by Diamond Springs date back as early as 1821 when William Becknell, called the father of the trail, combined several Indian paths and created a line of commerce between the United States and the residents of Santa Fe, then governed by Mexico. The Frank Atkinson Ranch was located at Diamond Springs on Turkey Creek.
 

Farmers and Drovers Bank and Indicator Building

Icon The Farmers and Drovers Bank and Indicator Building, Council Grove, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on 6-21-71 and 2-19-82.
 

First Baptist Church

Icon The First Baptist Church, Council Grove, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on 7-28-95.
 

Flint Hills Ranch Experiences

Icon Ranch tours and hiking available, spend a day or more involved in working ranch activities.
 

Flint Hills Scenic Byway

Icon The Flint Hills Scenic Byway stretches 47.2 miles across the Flint Hills of Kansas on K-177 between Council Grove and Cassoday in east central Kansas. It is a beautiful drive year-round showing off the panoramic vistas of the tallgrass prairie.
 

Guardian of the Grove

Icon This statue honors the Native American Kaw or Kansa Tribe. together with the Madonna of the Trail, these two statues symbolize the true story of the West. This bronze statue was created by Council Grove artist Mark Sampsel and was authorized by the Kaw Nation of Oklahoma.
 

Hay's House

Icon The Hays House is the oldest continuously operating restaurant west of the Mighty Mississippi.
 

Kaw Mission State Historic Site and Museum

Icon Start of the Historic Tour of Council Grove. Mission school for state's namesake tribe, the Kaw or Kansas. Interpretation of the Kaw, Santa Fe Trail, and Council Grove. Exhibits feature the mission built in 1850 as a school for Kaw children (children of the Kansa Tribe). It was modernized in 1926 by the tenth child of the first missionary couple to include rare rosewood woodwork and crystal chandeliers. The Kaw Methodist Mission was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on 3-24-77.
 

Last Chance Store

Icon The Last Chance Store, Council Grove, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, 6-21-71. It was built in 1857.
 

Madonna of the Trail Sculpture

Icon A pioneer woman and her two children stand as an example of courage to all those who visit Council Grove.
 

Neosho Riverwalk

Icon The Neosho Riverwalk connects the Madonna of the Trail DAR statue depicting a pioneer mother and her two children, the Guardian of the Grove statue honoring the Kaw, the Neosho River Crossing (Santa Fe Trail crossing) and the Kaw Mission State Historic Site. This ADA accessible, lighted, landscaped walkway is a favorite gathering place for those who enjoy the serenity of nature. It becomes a seasonal delight when decorated for the Christmas holidays.
 

Old Stone Barn

Icon This native stone barn was built into the bank of a hill in 1871 on land owned by the town's founder, Seth Hays. It is a 76-foot-long, imposing, structure. Gatherings at the Old Stone Barn in June are re-enactments of the Santa Fe Trail rendezvouses.
 

Santa Fe Trail Sites, Council Grove

Icon The 1825 treaty signed here with the Osage Indians ensured save travel to this "prairie Eden." Westbound wagon trains gathered here to form larger caravans. Today, Council Grove is rich with historic Santa Fe Trail sites.
 

Seth Hays House

Icon The Seth Hays House, Council Grove, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on 9-25-75. It was built in 1867.
 

Simcock (G. M.) House

Icon The Simcock (G. M.) House, Council Grove, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on 3-11-82.
 

White Memorial Camp

White Memorial Camp and Conference Center is a place for retreats, seminars, workshops, training sessions and specialty camps for nonprofit organizations, schools, youth groups…you name it